Memories are Made of Bliss! (Japanese: 想い出はパール！友情はダイヤモンド！！Memories are Pearls! Friendship is a Diamond!!) is the 191st and final episode of Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, and the 657th episode of the Pokémon anime. It first aired in Japan on September 9, 2010 and in the United States on February 5, 2011.

Contents

Blurb

Ash, Brock, and Dawn are spending a final day together at Dawn’s house before the boys head home to the Kanto region. While the three friends are chatting about memories of their journey and plans for the future, Dawn discovers that her Buneary has gotten an offer to become a Pokémon model for Poké Chic magazine! This news upsets Piplup, who throws a tantrum and runs away.

Meanwhile, Team Rocket has been contacted by headquarters—they’re told to report back immediately for an assignment only they can handle! The idea of a special mission thrills Jessie, James, and Meowth to no end! But Team Rocket isn’t quite ready to report back just yet. When our heroes head out to find Piplup, Team Rocket snares all of their Pokémon, with plans to give them to their boss as a gift. Our heroes quickly catch up and send Team Rocket blasting off again. However, Jessie, James and Meowth are so thrilled with their upcoming assignment, they don’t care!

Back at Dawn’s house, talk turns to the future once more. Ash and Dawn reaffirm their desires to become Pokémon Master and Top Coordinator, and Brock tells them he plans to pursue a career as a Pokémon Doctor! And after bidding a fond farewell to Dawn and her mom, Ash and Brock board the boat to Kanto. Then the two of them say their own warm goodbyes, as Brock heads off to Pewter City, and Ash sets off toward his beloved Pallet Town!

Plot

Early in the morning, the sun shines down on Twinleaf Town. In Dawn's bedroom, the Starly clock starts to go off at 7 A.M. when Dawn, still half-asleep, shuts it off. Piplup, lying at the end of the bed, decides to take matters into his own hands and wakes her up by using his Peck attack on her as she throws Piplup back on the sofa cushion. She quickly becomes delighted when she remembers that she has just woken up in her own room at home. Dawn then opens her window with a smile in the same way she had done it in the very first episode. Dawn comes downstairs greeting her mother, Brock and Pikachu as asks where Ash is. They tell her that he's still asleep, and Dawn, Piplup and Pikachu decide to wake him up. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt to wake Ash, and Dawn informs him that breakfast is ready. At this, Ash immediately leaps out of bed, grabbing Pikachu and sprinting towards the kitchen, but ends up falling down the stairs in his hurry.

At the table over breakfast, the gang begins to discuss what each of them will do next, which gets Piplup's attention. Ash admits he hasn't decided which league to challenge next, and that upon returning home he plans to spend some time with his Pokémon to thank them for their hard work during the Lily of the Valley Conference. He invites Dawn to travel with him and Brock back to Kanto later that day, but Johanna tells Dawn that Hermione, one of the judges from the Hearthome Collection, has contacted her wishing to meet with her regarding Buneary. The Trainers reminisce about the Hearthome Collection and Brock begins to fantasize about Paris, but Croagunk naturally decides to snap him out of it with a trusty Poison Jab.

Meanwhile, Jessie, James and Meowth gloomily walk along Route 202, reflecting upon their failure to make any kind of progress during their time in Sinnoh. Suddenly Delibird is spotted flying towards them. This time Delibird has no packages or Poké Balls for them, but instead has orders to contact Team Rocket HQ. After Delibird leaves, the trio contacts HQ and speaks to a secretary named Matori, who informs them that the three have been specially selected by Giovanni for an important mission and must report to HQ immediately. Naturally, Jessie, James and Meowth are overjoyed in Giovanni's new-found faith in them and believe its thanks to their efforts in helping to collapse Team Galactic and their victories over Pokémon Hunter J.

At Team Rocket HQ, Giovanni looks over the trio's personnel files as his secretary reports that they're perfect for the job, not mentioning what the job is.

Back in Twinleaf Town, Dawn announces that Buneary has been chosen to become a model for Poké Chic, the fashion magazine for Pokémon Stylists, to which Ash and Brock congratulate Buneary. As a result, Dawn is forced to turn down the offer to accompany Ash and Brock to Kanto, since she'll be staying in Sinnoh for the foreseeable future. Piplup becomes upset after learning the group is going to officially split up, and unleashes a Whirlpool attack at the Trainers before running off. Dawn quickly recalls Buneary into her Poké Ball as she sends out Togekiss while Ash sends out Staraptor to give chase, with Pikachu riding on Staraptor while the others follow on foot.

Eventually, Pikachu, Staraptor, and Togekiss catch up with Piplup, and Togekiss speeds ahead to cut Piplup off. Pikachu and Staraptor approach, but when they get in close Piplup tries to attack them with Hydro Pump. Pikachu jumps to the ground and follows Piplup on foot but Piplup tries to run away again and bumps into Togekiss. Seeing Togekiss' reassuring smile brings Piplup to tears. Pikachu tells Staraptor to go fetch Ash and approaches the distraught Piplup, who beings weakly hitting him and crying in despair. Pikachu understands Piplup's panicked feelings and also begins to cry. Togekiss hugs them both, trying to comfort them when they suddenly notice Meowth in the bushes besides them. Meowth is crying too, saying that he understands their pain, and this throws the Pokémon off guard. While they stare confusedly at him, Jessie and James catch the three of them in a net. Soon, the Team Rocket balloon starts to carry them away as Jessie and James make plans to hand the three over as a thank-you present to Giovanni. Luckily, Ash, Dawn, and Brock find them. Ash he orders Staraptor to use Brave Bird to destroy the balloon and calls out Torterra to use Leaf Storm and free the Pokémon from the net. For their last time in Sinnoh, Ash, Dawn and Brock engage together into a battle against the Team Rocket trio. Jessie sends out both Seviper and Yanmega and James sends out Carnivine, who bites him as usual. Carnivine leaps up and uses Bullet Seed, but as Pikachu use Thunderbolt to counter, Carnivine dodged it as Togekiss goes up against the Bug Catcher Pokémon and defeats it with a well-aimed Air Slash, Yanmega is defeated thanks to Staraptor's Aerial Ace. Even Meowth tries to attack with his Fury Swipes but Brock calls on Sudowoodo who sends Meowth flying back with a powerful Hammer Arm and Seviper doesn't last long against Torterra's Energy Ball. The battle ends with a powerful combination of Piplup's Hydro Pump and Pikachu's Volt Tackle blasting off Team Rocket. As Team Rocket blasts off, they comment that they are still happy because of their new special assignment.

Pikachu and Piplup celebrate the defeat of Team Rocket with a high-five and a laugh as Dawn approaches to talk to Piplup about his emotional outburst. Dawn tells Piplup that she too is upset that everyone is leaving, but assures him that just because they're separating doesn't mean they won't see each other again. Piplup begins to get upset again, but Dawn hugs Piplup and holds him close, telling him that there's no need to worry and reminds him that he is a big boy. Piplup's pride comes to the fore, and he manages to get himself to stop crying and puts on a brave face as his friends all watch on.

Back at Dawn's house, everyone is watching a championship match on TV between ChampionCynthia and Flint of the Elite Four. Ash watches the match intently, as Cynthia's Garchomp and Flint's Infernape battle to their fullest. Ash imagines himself commanding Infernape, thinking of how it would be to challenge the Champion himself. Although the match is hard-fought, Flint's Infernape is unable to stand up to Garchomp's Dragon Rush and is defeated, allowing Cynthia to keep her title. After watching the match, Ash feels energized and tells everyone that although he may have lost the Sinnoh League, he is still going to train to one day make it to the Champions League, face Cynthia, and earn the title of Champion Master. Brock then stands to make his own announcement. After all the time he spent traveling with Ash and Dawn, he had been thinking about his own goals and dreams, and after the recent incident on the ferry, he has decided to follow Nurse Joy's advice and train to become a Pokémon Doctor. He informs Ash that he won't be able to travel though, since he will have to remain in Pewter City to study. Dawn reaffirms that she plans to follow her path to becoming a Top Coordinator and comments that all three of them have amazing goals in front of them, so there's "no need to worry". Ash, as usual, points out that when Dawn says "no need to worry", it's usually the time to worry the most, but Dawn replies that she is certain all of them will fulfill their dreams. Suddenly, Johanna points out that it is already 3 P.M. and tells everyone that it's time to go if Ash and Brock are going to catch the ferry back to Kanto.

At the ferry port, Ash and Brock rush out of a souvenir store with many bags in their arms, and Brock reminds them that he has a large family to shop for. As Ash and Brock prepare to board the ferry, Dawn thanks her friends for helping her through her journey. Ash and Brock reply that they are the ones who are thankful for her. Ash and Dawn then exchange their final high five while Pikachu and Piplup also high five, hug, and say their goodbyes at last. Ash and Brock board the ship and it sets off towards sea. As Dawn looks upon her friends, she hangs her head in sadness, the reality that they are leaving hitting her. As the ferry moves away, Ash yells from the deck, "Dawn! No need to worry!". Dawn runs down the dock waving to her friends and thanking them again for everything they did for her, as Piplup also shouts out goodbyes. As the sun sets, Piplup jumps into Dawn's arms and she happily hugs her partner knowing that while their adventures with Ash and Brock are over, they still have many more adventures of their own to come.

The next morning, Ash and Brock go up on deck and are awestruck by the sight of Kanto in front of them. Soon, the two are at a familiar crossroads, and it is time for them to go their separate ways. Ash wishes Brock luck on his path become a Pokémon Doctor, while Brock wishes Ash luck on his dream of becoming a Pokémon Master. The two shake hands, smile, and then clasp arms, knowing the journeys they've taken together have created a strong bond between them. Finally, they separate and depart down their respective roads.

Soon, Ash and Pikachu are standing on a hill overlooking Pallet Town. Ash happily tells Pikachu they're home and the two run the rest of the way, bringing their adventures through Sinnoh to an end.

Trivia

Similar to the finalepisodes of the previous two series, the usual To be continued is replaced with Next Time... A New Beginning!. However, unlike the previous two series, which ended with Ash leaving Kanto, this series ends with Ash returning to Pallet Town.

In the original Japanese version, the credits play before the series ends with a scene between Ash and Brock, and a scene of Ash and Pikachu alone. It features scenes of various events throughout the series.

This is the last appearance of Ash's original design, including flashbacks.